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Update:
I decided to follow up about noon on December 8 and called Shriners Hospitals for Children HQ to ask if Edgar McGonigal, SHC Director of Corporate Development, still worked there.
The operator connected me to his answering machine. My instincts told me to not leave a message, thinking that “If he doesn’t work there anymore, why would his answering machine still be on? So higher ups could spy and see who was trying to call him?”
I then called the Shriners’ HR department and asked “Are you able to verify that Edgar McGonigal is still an employee of Shriners Hospitals for Children?” I was told the head would get back to me.
Time was ticking away. It was 1:30 here but 4:30 back there, so I called again and left a message for the head of HR. I called back and asked for PR but surprisingly, was put through to the Legal Department, and left a message for the VP of Legal as she would not be in until the next morning.
No one returned any of these calls.
About 7 the next morning, I knew it was 10 back there and again called the Shriner legal department. I asked for Laurie Spieler, was put into her voicemail and left a message, again asking “Is Edgar McGonigal still employed at Shriners Hospitals for Children?”
I finally got a hold of Laurie Spieler about 9:30 this morning. It was about noon thirty back there.
I again asked if McGonigal still worked there?
To her credit, she answered “We don’t comment on employee status. We take employment confidentiality very seriously.”
So, was Edgar McGonigal finally fired last November?
Allegedly.
Sandy Frost
December 9, 2008
Starbucks, WA
Editor's Note:
This editorial is presented as a public service.
Thank you,
Sandy Frost
Starbucks, Washington
When one thinks of the Shriners, what comes to mind?
Helping the kids?
The red fez?
Retaliation?
Yup.
From the top on down, some Shriner leaders distinguish themselves by ruthlessly retaliating against their own.
They will stop at nothing to protect their turf and keep their secrets secret.
Kind of a strange way to run an $8 billion charity, huh?
Fraternal Shriner courts are stacked with real life judges and attorneys who seemingly conspire to ruin the lives of innocent Shriners by prosecuting them on trumped up charges.
Just for standing up to these power hungry elitists.
Maybe this is because their bylaws state that "Shrine law does not include the law of the land."
Then there are those sued for asking "Where does all the money go?" and "Why are your taxes so messed up?"
Hey, IRS? Is funding revenge a proper use of charitable donations?
I didn't think so.
Top level retaliation was revealed after immediate past Potentate, Bernard Lemieux, called for an internal committee to investigate allegations that Chairman of the Board of Trustees for SHC, Ralph Semb and Imperial Treasurer Gene Bracewell had violated conflict of interest policies by behaving unethically.
The April 10, 2008 Special Committee's Interim Report detailed how Semb and Bracewell tried to fire a corporate executive who opposed their efforts to rehire a fundraiser who kept $43 million out of $47 million raised for the hospitals.
The hospitals only got $2.5 million.
It looks kind of like this:
Vantage Fundraising - $$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$
Shriners Hospitals - $$s
The committee reported that SHC executive vice president and COO James Full breached the confidential employment records of Shriners Corporate Director of Development Edgar McGonigal to avoid a confrontation with Semb as he and Bracewell tried to generate unfavorable employee evaluations so they could get him fired. The committee wrote that "it was apparent that Messrs. Semb and Bracewell ignored important elements of the 360 degree review process, including the necessity for confidentiality of the identities of the reviewers."
Semb said that he fired McGonigal at Full’s direction, which was inconsistent with what others had told the investigators.
They also reported that as President of the SHC Board of Trustees, Semb felt he had every right to unilaterally fire a senior executive for no reason. He apparently did so without any regard for HR input or support. They viewed Semb’s exercise of authority as "potentially dangerous for the organization in an era in which employment termination decisions are frequently litigated at considerable expense and loss to employers."
The committee also found that Semb's unsuccessful firing of McGonigal was not an isolated incident. Senior executives described a "culture of fear" among senior management at SHC because individuals such as Semb and Bracewell implicitly threatened to fire them if they didn’t "bend to their will."
So much for all that Masonic brotherhood stuff.
Remember, one must first be a Master Mason before joining sub-groups like the Scottish Rite, the Knights Templar and the Shriners.
The committee reported that one board member was scared to serve with them because he’d spent tons of money for his board position and wanted to keep it. If the investigation was critical of Semb and Bracewell, he feared being kicked off key committees in retaliation.
The committee stated that allegations made by former controller Willard Fawcett required further investigation, including:
· The 2006 990 may have contained "improper reporting of certain items"
· The fraudulent 990 was knowingly executed by Semb
· Improper expense reimbursements didn't support SHC's exempt purpose
· Contracts that were not in SHC’s best interests
· Contracts that may have personally benefited members of the Joint Boards
The committee expressed deep concern that possible "excess benefit transactions" were not reported to the IRS and this could lead to fees, penalties, excise taxes as well as the suspension of the Shriners tax exempt status.
They also wrote:
"Even if any financial irregularities do not implicate criminal liability, their existence may reflect a breakdown of internal financial controls and lack of oversight by the joint boards."
These "excess benefit transactions" include board members taking their wives on trips and a free trip admitted to by Gene Bracewell. Then there is the possibility that these board members also failed to report these transactions as income on their own tax returns.
To see if anything has changed over the past ten months, Imperial Potentate Douglas Maxwell, Chairman of the SHC Board of Trustees Ralph Semb and Corporate Director of Public Relations Alicia Aargiz-Lyons were asked:
"What have you done to address and institute the recommendations of the Special Committee called to investigate allegations of unethical behavior of Ralph Semb and Gene Bracewell? Specifically, what is being done to:
• Reprimand Semb and Bracewell?
• Further investigate the allegations of Mr. Fawcett by both internal accounting personnel and senior executives at
SHC as well as independent forensic accounting by Deloite & Touche Forensic Advisory services?
• Authorize all actions to address the matters identified in the KMPG letter with respect to expense
reimbursement policies and review of reimbursement records of the Members of the Joint Boards and
Senior executives to determine whether there is a need for corrective action with respect to reporting or
recovery of reimbursement amounts? In the spirit of non profit transparency, disclosure and
accountability please email a copy of the KMPG letter for reference.
• Amend the Conflict of Interest Policy and the Bylaws to a) vest authority in a designated full-time
member of the Legal Department of SHC to determine in advance whether any conflict of interest exists
with respect to any transaction, on the request of a Member of the Joint Boards, an Officer or a Senior
Executive or b) vest authority in a designated Committee of the Joint Boards, which may be a newly
organized Corporate Compliance Committee, to investigate and report to the Joint Boards on any potential
violation of the Conflict of Interest Policy?
• Amend SHC bylaws to debar from business with SHC any entity that provides or offers any gifts, gratuities or favors
to any member of the Joint Boards, any Officer or Senior Executive of SHC?
• Implement a program for corporate compliance, including a hot-line or other similar confidential means for
employees, senior executives, trustees or directors to report suspected incidents or corporate wrongdoing, conflict
of interest, violations of corporate policy or violations of the law, and which requires confidential investigation of any
such reports and reporting to appropriate corporate authorities for resolution and corrective action?"
All three have failed to respond.
Does their stonewalling suggest more secrecy and cover-up?
The public needs to know why the Shriners continue to support those in positions of public trust who abuse their positions for personal gain.
Or is it more important to control business operations as top Shriner leaders practice the politics of punishment?
Heed the words of Writer and futurist John Renesch:
"Revenge stops us from expanding as a species, it keeps us locked in our box of limitations and dooms us to endless cycles of vengeance and violence; reparation, reconciliation and forgiveness expands our horizons to expand so we can grow as a species. This is part of the new thinking we must employ to evolve consciously."
All copies of material reprinted or duplicated from "by Sandy Frost" must include the following credit line: From http://sandyfrost.newsvine.com/ Copyright © 2008 by Sandy Frost. Used by permission.
